Growth of Renewable Energy in US Defies Trump Administration’s Attacks

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Despite the Trump administration’s relentless efforts to increase production of planet-warming fossil fuels, renewable energy continued to rise across the US, reaching 26% of…

Despite the Trump administration’s relentless efforts to increase production of planet-warming fossil fuels, renewable energy continued to rise across the US, reaching 26% of generated electricity in 2025.

Since coming into office at the start of 2025, Donald Trump has made the promotion of fossil fuels a cornerstone of his domestic and foreign policy. It may therefore be surprising to learn that US utilities generated a record amount of electricity from renewable energy sources last year.

Around 26% of power in the country came from renewables, enough to power 108 million homes for an entire year. By the end of 2025, renewables accounted for 33.2% of utility-scale capacity – energy projects designed to generate electricity for the power grid rather than individual consumers. While support for fossil fuels is often tied to Republican policy, the Solar Energy Industry Association found that red states, including Texas, Florida and Ohio, accounted for 73% of new solar capacity added last year.

A February forecast from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that generating capacity will reach record highs this year, with 93% of new capacity additions coming from solar, wind and batteries. This builds on a decades-long shift in the US energy mix, which has seen coal production in steady decline, falling by 53% between 2000 and 2024.

Behind this sustained growth is the declining cost of solar cells, wind turbines and large-scale batteries. Even without subsidies, renewables are now the most cost-competitive form of energy generation in the US. The case for renewables is further strengthened by the speed at which infrastructure can be deployed – under a year for a solar farm, compared to several years for a natural gas plant.

Calls to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels have intensified amid the US-Israeli war in Iran. The devastating conflict has triggered what analysts describe as the worst oil crisis in history, with prices exceeding $100 per…

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